According to a think tank Cato Institute, for each month that refunds are delayed, the U.S. will owe another $700 million in interest.
Chennai: The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Monday started the refund process of around $166 billion tariff payments collected from importers under the emergency tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump that were struck down by the Supreme Court.
Under the phase I of refund, companies must file detailed declarations listing shipments and tariff payments through the new CAPE (Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries) system. CBP started accepting claims from Monday and the refunds are expected to be issued within 60 to 90 days.
Over 330,000 importers of record made over 53 million entries with International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) tariff deposits or payments to the tune of around $166 billion. According to a think tank Cato Institute, for each month that refunds are delayed, the U.S. will owe another $700 million in interest.
CBP projects that Phase I of CAPE will process approximately 63 per cent of those entries for which refunds are due. More recent payments will be prioritised, while technical glitches or documentation issues can create delay in processing. According to experts, the refund process might take months to complete.
Importers of Record - the company or person listed as responsible for bringing the goods into the US - can claim the refund. A customs broker can also file, but only if they originally handled the import paperwork for the importer.
Once the importers receive the refunds, the exporters across the globe too will receive the refunds. Indian exporters will receive refunds on their reciprocal tariffs as well as the punitive tariffs.
